Flexible button



April 14, 1931.

F. R. WHITE E1- AL FLEXIBLE BUTTON Filed Nov. 5, 1950 7L -2l-M aww/MouJoh/NJ 60575 ""f www atroz mi Patented Apr. 14, 1931 UNITED STA TESPATENT OFFICE FRANKLIN R. WHITE ANU 'IOHN J. WOOSTER, OF WATERBURY,CONNECTICUT, S- SIGNORS T0 THE PATENT BUTTON COMPANY, OF WATERBURY,CONNECTICUT, A

CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT FLEXIBLE BUTTON Application med November a,`1930. serial No. 493,135.

Our invention relates to new and useful improvements in buttons, andmore particularly to the flexible type of button.

As is well known to those skilled in the art, it is often desirable tohave a button wherein the head may move vertically and also tiltslightly or cant when lifted with the fingers, as this makes it easierto slip the button through the button hole. This is especially so whenthe button is to be used on work garments, such as overalls and otherforms of work suits.

One of the objects of the present invention, therefore, is to produce aflexible type of button that will be extremely cheap to manufacture andassemble, such button consisting of but two parts, that is, the buttonhead and eyelet, after which to attach the button a tack will be driveninto the eyelet to hold the button to the material of the garment.

Still another object of the invention is to produce a button of but twoparts, each of the parts, in turn, being simple in construction, easilymade and the parts capable of quick assembly.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a button formed ofbut a head and eyelet and the head capable of flexing, canting, ortilting with respect to the eyelet.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in certainnew and novel arrangements and combinations of parts, as will behereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims.

Referring now to the drawings showing a preferred embodiment of ourinvention.

Fig. 1 is a sectional view showing the head of the button in itsuppermost position with relation to its eyelet and before the tack isinserted;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the button head in its lowered ornormal position with relation to the eyelet, and the tack be' ing driventhrough the cloth and the eyelet to hold the button to the cloth;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the eyelet.

Referring now more specically to the drawings, there is shown a buttonhead 'l which is preferably made of aluminum, or

might even be made of a hard metal, and is slightly convex on its uppersurface 2 and having a slightly tapered rim 3. There is also a hollowhub 4, the lower edge of the hub being crimped or forced inwardly, as at5, after the huh has been placed `over an eyelet 6, which eyelet willshortly be described.

This bottom head may be made from an aluminum slug or wire, which mannerof making is very well known in the art and when made in this manner isextremely cheap to manufacture.

It will also be understood that there might be an ornamentation orinsignia pressed in the upper surface 2 of the button head, if desired,or, on the other hand, it may be left plain.

This button head 1 is generally made in a lbutton machine, the headbeing subjected to one or two operations of the dies. Thus, it may bereadily seen that the button head is an extremely cheap one tomanufacture.

Now the hollow hub is domed, as at 7, as it is this dome surface 7 thatcauses the mutilation or rounding of the prong 8 of a tack 9, which isdriven up into the eyelet to hold the button in place.

Referring to the other part of the button, that is, the eyelet 6, thisis to be made of a relatively cheap metal and also consists of a hollowhub 10, and the base 11, the base 'eXtendin g upwardly to the point 12and then downwardly and inwardly to form the rim 13, as may be readilyseen in the several views. The upper edge of the hub is flared slightlyupwardly to form the rim 14 and the diameter across the hub and its rim14 is such that it will just slidingly lit within the hollow hub 4 ofthe button head. After the parts are placed in position, the lower edgeofthe walls of the hub will be crimped or forced inwardly so` that theupward movement of the button head with respect to the eyelet islimited.

It is also to be noticed that the curvature of the crimped walls of thehollow hub correspond to the upward curvature of the base of the eyelet,so that when the button head is in its lowermost position, as shown inlF ig. 2, therefisv aperfeot'nesting of the parts.

It willl be understood that although the lower edge of the button iscrimped Vabout the hub ofthe eyele'tA itis' not crimpedv so tightly butthatthe head may move, vertically Y with respect to theeyelet and mayeven cant o rslightly tilt;l with .respect to the eyelet.,'Ofjcourse,"the eyelets may bemade in oneA `machine'and thebuttonheads'in another,l and the head crimped tothe eyelet in still another pmachine. f

llhese buttonsare alllattached by' anaute'- maticattaching machinev(notshown) and it Y will be understood that the buttons are placed Y inone hopper and thetacks in another, then the cloth l5 will be runthroughrthe machine (not shown), and Vthe'tack `49Y will-have its Vprongdriven upwardly through' the cloth,

'through the 'hollow hub of theeyelet,.and im- -pinge against' the 'domeof `the head andV will Y be guided andmutilated tion seen in Fig.' 2; vv

Thus, thebutton head, thro'ughthe medium of the eyelet and tack, willbetightly held tothe cloth, while, at the same time, the' butto. 'assumethe ,positon head maybe moved vertically or cant rhead itself may moveit with 'respect to.'` the eyelet, thus making it easier toslipth'rou'gh a button' hole.

The baseofthe eyelet `with its rim provides a maximum contacting.surface for the cloth and the relatively Alarge head of the tack willthustightly clamp the cloth between the eyelet and-'the tack, 'thusmaking 'it nearly impossible to tear the button from its placel on thecloth. Likewise,VV although the button n cannot be'disengaged from theeyelet.V 1 I vWe are aware that it is old to make flexible type'of'buttons, and we do not broadlyclaim our invention as such, but we arenot'aware Y' edge of the hubof the button head, the end .wall of the hubof the button adapted toreceive and mutilate the end of a tack, and theeyelet adapted to have the mutilated end of the tack bear thereagainsttoY hold 'theeyelet in position @when attached `to a material.

3.- A flexible button provided'with va onef' piece closed topbutton'head,a onefpieceeye;

let slidingly fitted withinthe button head but heldagainst detachmenttherefrom, ajtackk mutilatedwithin the button head and eX` tending overa portion ofthe eyelet whereby the eyelet is rigidly heldto the.material to which it is attached and the button `head capable ofmovement with'l respect to the eye- 42 A flexible buttonl comprisingl aonepiece head having'a yhub,f aneyelet fitting Vwithin the hub, and theeyeletprovided with a liar-ed upper edge, the lowerwalls of the hubbeing crimped beneath the flared Vrim of the eyelet, the base oftheeyelet extend l ing upwardly and outwardly and then. downwardly andinwardly to forma rim, and the lower edge of the hub nesting in the baseof theleyelet, lthejhuband flared upper rim of theeyelet adaptedtorec'eivethemutilated y of any buttons that areas simply Aconstructedff Y' facture and with such few operations thereon, as thejpresentbutton.'- 'f 'f Having thusdescribed our inventiomfwhat we claim as newters Patent is :1

' l.. A two-piece liexible button'rcomprisin'g 'a solid head, a 'hollowdome-sh'aped'fhub,

single-.pieceeyelet having aflared 'upper edge and afla're d' base,thelower edge of or as e'asilyassembled Oras cheap to'ma'nuwe alii; oursigna- .and desireto secure by Let-V A thevhub crimped'beneath'the upperedge of 'the`eyelet, lthe doniefshaped'hub adapted to deflect'rth'eprong' of a tackover the i'are'd 'rim of 'theeyelet to-.thus hold-thebutton to V.the lmaterial to which it is to be attached,

2. flexible button comprising a' one-piece closed topb-utton kheadhaving ahub, a onepiece eyeletl having aflared' upper rim, the

lower edge of the hub crimped beneathV the,v

Arim offthe'eyelet whereby the head may move slightly withvrespect tothe eyelet, the eyelet 'having a base that extends slightly upwardly'and outw'ardlyV to thereby vnest the" lower

